The greatest benefit of douching is the mechanical cleansing that it provides. Although approximately one half of all women in this country douche, presently available douche preparations and douche delivery devices are either ineffective, inconvenient, time consuming or dangerous to use.
Conventional douche delivery devices contain a bag to hold the water and douche preparation and a substantially straight nozzle for insertion into the vagina. That nozzle is often connected directly to the bag as by providing the nozzle and the bag with complementary threaded portions for screw-attachment. Some douche delivery devices also contain a hose and valve arrangement so that the device can also be used as an enema bag.
In operating conventional douche delivery devices the user is required to lie on her back in a bathtub, manipulate the nozzle into her vagina and introduce the douche preparation into the vagina by repeated squeezing of the bag. After the douche preparation is so administered, the woman stands in the bathtub and allows the douche preparation and accumulated debris to slowly drain, by gravity, down her legs. This slow drainage has been found to be disadvantageous since accumulated debris is often left in the vaginal folds. This method for douching with conventional douche delivery devices is inconvenient and time consuming. In addition to the discomfort which the user must withstand, while lying on her back on a cold hard bathtub surface and manipulating the nozzle and the bag, the user must also spend considerable time after douching to cleanse her body of accumulated debris, infected water and the douche preparation which has trickled down her body.
Many conventional non-disposable douche bags are constructed of rubber and the douche preparation is administered directly from the rubber bag. These types of douche bags have been found to be dangerous. The interior of the rubber bag is damp and dark and serves as a culture media for the promotion and growth of bacteria. Pathogenic organisms cultured in the bag are transmitted into the woman's body upon subsequent douching and can lead to disease. In addition to this danger, inherent in non-disposable rubber douche bags, many conventional douche delivery devices do not empty completely or are very difficult to manipulate so as to empty completely. This increases their ineffectiveness and potential danger due to bacteria growth or from air being pumped into the vagina.
Furthermore even if a disposable douche preparation is used, that is, one with a removable container which is discarded after use, conventional douche delivery devices and douche preparations are not designed to provide a sufficient quantity of the douche preparation for adequate mechanical cleansing.